Shoes
by DWH
Summary: A character study of some of the cast of The Blue Side of the Force. Musings on the subject of... their shoes.


They're not as polished as they used to be. 

I remember a time when I started my day by polishing my boots to a gleaming black. I wasn't happy until I could see my reflection in them. Now they're dull, scuffed, and carry the dirt of more worlds than I care to think about. Ever since Telos… boots just didn't seem to be the highest priority anymore, you know? Morgan used to tease me if I missed a spot- she knew how obsessively I scrubbed my boots before leaving for work. I was irritated at the time, but I'd give almost anything just to hear her tell me how dirty my boots are now. They're the same ones I bought just before I left the last time. Five years, and they haven't given out on me yet.

The soles are starting to come apart, but it's nothing a little glue and space tape can't fix. After all, there's nothing quite so comforting as a pair of well-worn boots.

_xxxxxxxxx _

I think they got me the wrong size boots or something. Whatever the problem is, my feet just don't feel right walking around in these shoes. They squeeze my toes a bit too much, and they're next to impossible to get on and off. I don't know who the Jedi shoesmith is, but I'd like to give him a good kick with these monsters. Well, maybe they're not that bad. But something certainly isn't right.

I liked my water shoes so much better. Stretchy mesh and soft rubber soles, good for running on dry land or hopping into the ocean. They gave my feet a chance to breathe, a chance to stretch out if they wanted.

Maybe that's the problem. Maybe I'm just not used to wearing such fitted shoes in general.

New shoes are tough to break in.

_xxxxxxxxx _

Nobody makes better boots than the Mandalorians.

I do not exaggerate on this fact- I wore the same pair of boots through all my training, up until a fiasco on Borleias. We were mounting an assault on the population- one of our earlier strikes in the war. It's always in your best interest to practice on the weaker, less well-protected worlds before moving coreward. Anyway, I was a part of the ground team for that mission. We were scouting out the area surrounding a military base, trying to discover what defenses they had.

I don't know whether to give them credit for being clever, or if they were just on some sort of monetary downturn, because we did not find any electronic traps. We scanned very carefully, using the best equipment Mandalore had to offer us. But the screens all came up negative.

We found out, thirty or so feet later, that it was not because traps didn't exist.

It was because the traps they used were primitive, spring-loaded devices for trapping large mammals.

I escaped without too many major injuries, and of course we were able to escape the scene unnoticed, but the trap pierced straight through my armoured boots.

We improved our boots from then on- they're now all tested on similar traps to make sure that nothing can pierce them. These boots were the ones I received after losing the old ones, and I defy anyone to come up with something that can destroy them without destroying me as well.

One can never over estimate the value of a pair of well-constructed boots.

_xxxxxxxxx _

Someone once asked me why Jedi don't wear black boots, and I couldn't think for the life of me why.

Mine are brown, of course, like most Jedi I know, though I grant there are some exceptions. But I always just put it down to the fact that they matched my colour scheme. A very natural palate, I suppose. I never really thought about it, but it is a slight oddity.

All I had to know was that they're sturdy, they fit well, and I can run or fight in them for many hours. I'm not even sure where they come from- the Jedi Enclave supplies all of us with our garments. Whoever they are, they do an excellent job. They take abuse well, and will serve me for some time to come.

Maybe next time I need boots, I'll request a black pair.

_xxxxxxxxx _

My boots still smell a little bit like the sewers.

You'd think the smell would come out after a while, but I guess not. Too many years of exploring, trying to outrun the Gammoreans and trick the Vulkars. Come to think of it, I probably waded through some pretty nasty stuff down there. I almost miss it, but on the other hand, I can live without the smell.

It's kinda funny, though, being with Jedi and other respectable people. I was always the troublemaker, and maybe they really _could_ smell me coming. Although, in the Lower City, I think everyone smelled just a little. Sometimes, I think I still ought to smell a little more than I do, but I told Big Z the other day that I was going to be respectable, just like everyone else. They even gave me new armour and clothing so that I don't have to wear my old stuff anymore. But the boots didn't fit, so I had to stick with my old ones.

One of these days, I'm going to buy myself a new pair. A shining black pair with a bright silver buckle on the side. I don't know why I want the buckle, but it would look pretty.

And I'm tired of wearing smelly boots.

_xxxxxxxxx _

I don't like shoes. Who invented them, anyway?

Last time I wore them was during the infamous Finlae blizzard, five years back. And that was only to avoid the frostbite. Very bizarre, that blizzard was- we didn't get much snow in my area. Not that I'm complaining; having to wear boots too often would drive me up a wall.

The Force is such an all-pervasive thing, but only in things that are actually alive. I love the feeling of running barefoot through the grass, nothing separating the life in me from the life of the plants and underground ecosystems. Why anyone would purposefully put a barrier there- with the exception of extreme weather- is beyond me.

No, my feet need room to breathe. Maybe that says something about me, and maybe it doesn't. But as it stands, I'll pass on the boots and take the calluses that inevitably ensue. After all, a callus is nature's protection from the elements.

We had feet long before shoes were invented.


End file.
